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Wards also sold Kay and Regal instruments in the 30s. They also sold Kay guitars under the Recording King brand- I think this was before the deal with Gibson. In about 1940 Wards/Recording King...

Kalamazoo was a Gibson sub-brad- the idea was to create a line of less expensive instruments that were not sold by Gibson's established dealers. There was also Cromwell and Kel Kroydon. Gibson did...

Yes, Recording King had its own version of the Gibson Nick Lucas- finished in "black ebony" so less perfect wood with blemishes could be used and these not show. There was a truss rod in the neck but...

There is a brace across the back, all right. I think that the suggestion that Gibson organised a deal to lower some inventory of various bits and pieces makes a lot of sense- just keeping afloat...

The Wards 1642 is like the A-50 from its years of production in the mid-30s except for its pickguard and the absence of a truss rod and the cloud style tailpiece while the A-40 is Gibson's new lower...

Mick

Wards/Recording King did do a round hole model made by Gibson- like the Kalamazoo version and likewise an f hole model like the KM-21 plus in 1940 a blond version like the Oriole Kalamazoo....

You can see the fibreboard- one step up from chipboard case in this eBay. You can see that the pickguard had rotted and this gives off nitric acid which did some minor damage to the top which is...

The book mentioned by Paul Fox covers the whole world of instruments made by Gibson either as the company's own sub-brands starting in 1930 or for sale by third parties like Wards/Recording King...

I have looked through Spann's Guide To Gibson and no FON numbers for this model appear to be listed- it was a quick scan but 91C was shown as an L5 guitar- so that cannot be the number- I don't know...

Mine has its original case- it is a fibreboard item- strong but the mandolin rattles around in it. In fact, I have had trouble getting an old hard case for mine as the pointed headstock makes it...

It is a Wards Model 1642- a version of the Gibson A-50. The big difference is no adjustable truss rod. This mandolin model is the only Gibson made instrument sold by a third party that has a carved...

He is open to offers, so somebody who wants to learn (the hard way?) may be able to get it for less and see what gives. I suppose I have all the bits to make it play subject to the neck angle but my...

It could be then that the banjo club had these made- possibly using a local dealer who imported from the UK to create something a bit special for the club. There was a huge music boom in the 1930s in...

I cannot discern the wood used from that photo but this model was sold by a fair few third parties as well as Regal branded through music shops for about 15 years from circa 1920 to about 1935. As we...

As the earlier thread mentioned, it is probably British made but I would not rule out continental Europe but it seems Australia is where they are found which makes me think somebody there organised...

I am playing a B & J vended Regal made mandolin right now- and its tone and volume are great. It was branded as a Serenader and has a red spruce top. B & J sold its guitar "big brother" version as...

Well, it has sold for $125!

The case is a British made Reliance case- George Houghton and Sons, and that is no surprise if it came from Tasmania. The instrument's tailpiece looks American but the tuners appear to be German....

Dennis

201685
Here is a postwar Kay sold as an Old Kraftsman with that style of tuner. As I mentioned at this time Kay appeared to use Kluson tuners exclusively but on some of their higher end...

The eBay listing has vanished- nothing in the sold section.

From time to time there are junk mandolins with good cases or rare parts and that Gibson A-50 was just such an example. Of course, we will never know if this tailpiece is from that sale- the buyer of...

These are rare and this one comes minus a mandolin that might be superfluous!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/115435177720?hash=item1ae07906f8%3Ag%3As2EAAOSwkgZisLqJ&LH_ItemCondition=4

Well, that all sounds remarkably providential that you were able to get the mandolin playing well with the minimum of effort. I would imagine your new old tuners might be similar to those originally...

That's great- I am sure you will cherish it.

I have never been sure about these tuners. I have a feeling that they might be a form of Kluson tuner as they appear on Kay instruments in the early 40s when Kay began using Kluson tuners. The fact...